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The county of Ventura issued a press release Tuesday evening thatthe county will follow newly modified state Public Health guidelines in allowing more businesses to reopen. Those include office-based businesses, carwashes, pet groomers, outdoor museums and other businesses included in the state's "Next Steps" guidelines.

Gov. Gavin Newsom announced modifications to the statewide stay-at-home order May 12. The state has added more businesses to its Early Stage 2 opening guidelines. The governor announced that counties, under the guidance of the Public Health officer, can move forward in reopening office-based businesses, carwashes, pet groomers, outdoor museums and other public spaces.

“Our community has worked so hard to social distance and to slow the spread of COVID-19 in our county," said Ventura County Public Health Officer Dr. Robert Levin. "As we move further into Stage 2, we must do so with caution. We must continue to practice social distancing and businesses must make modifications needed to lower the risk of COVID-19 exposure. This will help keep our numbers low so we can continue to move forward.”

“This is another big step on our path to reopening," said county CEO Mike Powers. "We can only do this through the guidance of our Public Health officer. We are positioned to move forward because our businesses and residents have sacrificed so much to comply with the local order. We trust our business community. We know they are working so hard to meet the guidelines. We want them to be able to reopen safely and we know they will do a great job.”

Powers said that with Stage 2, California is now open with modifications.

The time line is:

Early Stage 2, Part 1 in effect May 8.

Curbside retail allowed May 8, along with manufacturers and logistics.

Businesses can reopen after they meet each of the steps. They do not need a formal inspection before they open as long as they have followed the guidelines. A site visit may be conducted at a future date.

Businesses that are already open under the previous order must also complete the steps to reopening:

If you are a business that is already permitted to be open and in operation you are asked to review these requirements and confirm that you have met these requirements by registering your business.

Each business is free to write their own worksite-specific COVID-19 Prevention Plan that complies with the state guidance. The state provided companion checklist for each industry guidance document can be used to create your Prevention Plan. Below are sample templates that will satisfy the Prevention Plan requirement.

Powers stated in the press release: "The governor announced today (May 12) that counties can work toward an accelerated path to reopening. While the criteria are high and intended primarily for small rural counties, we are working diligently toward achieving approval.

"Dine-in restaurants and shopping centers may be opened in counties that have received state approval for the accelerated path. The county has made progress in meeting the governor’s requirements for moving forward. These steps have included: hospital surge and personal protective equipment capacity; protection of high-risk patient populations: seniors, long-term-care-facility residents, homeless and most recently expanded efforts in contact tracing capacity and testing. The efforts to protect our community health and our local economy are aligned. Investing in these public health steps will benefit the health of our community as well as our local economy."

The following sectors, businesses, establishments, or activities are not permitted to operate in California at this time: